“My faith feeds me like the rain and the sun nourishing flowers. I call on faith in all my life experiences and yield a beautiful bouquet of experiences. I dig into my faith by looking beyond appearances that may seem limiting. My faith leads me to explore new possibilities. I plant positive thoughts in my mind, then let go. I leave the “when” and “how” up to God, and trust in divine order. I nourish my garden of faith by connecting with God in this moment. I envision myself growing in the light of Spirit. I adapt to life’s changes with ease. Just as the gardener reaps a bountiful harvest, I receive abundant blessings. I trust in God and see beauty everywhere.” Daily Word June 11, 2015

My faith is a gift from God that I cherish and am grateful for. It is my faith that allowed me to move 5,000 miles away from my family and friends to live on Maui. It is my faith that has carried me through many trials and made me the woman I am today. It is my faith that gave me the courage to write and publish my book. I stepped out in faith and followed my heart knowing I would meet my soulmate on Maui. Faith will continue to lead me on to new possibilities and adventures, for this I am certain.

I shared in my blog last week about meeting Dana at the Fairmont Hotel pool and our “Divine Connection.” Since then we have been in daily communication either by phone or text. She’s shared some of her experiences since returning home that I would like to share with you. We never know what the impact will be when we “shine our light” in another person’s life. It could just be a conversation, a smile or a kind deed that has lasting effects.

I just got off the phone with Dana and she shared her personal experience of reading “Simply a Woman of Faith” with me. When she read Chapter 5 Messages from Heaven – How God speaks through Songs she was blown away and said she almost felt giddy. For those of you who haven’t read my book, this chapter is about my mother “Honey” and her death when I was 20 years old. My mother died in front of me in the church on my parents’ 25th wedding anniversary.

Dana wrote, “Pat, I didn’t want to put your book down when I read this chapter. Although the yard sale stories in the first chapter were fun and I enjoyed them, this chapter really spoke to me and I thought this woman has had hardships and tragedy and she is REAL. I saw you living your faith through difficult times. My best girlfriend (since kindergarten) is also named “Honey.” What is even more interesting is that her mother’s name was “Honey” too. She was like a mother to me and she was a big part of my faith journey. As a teenager (when my friends were in the basement having a party), I was in the kitchen talking to her mother about God. What I remember is that she shared her faith and she shined her light. She is just like you Pat. Her eyes sparkled, she was full of joy and she laughed a lot.” After hearing this, I knew it was destiny that Dana and I met at the pool.

When I asked Dana what she liked best about reading my book she said, “It was your ongoing, natural dialogue with God. It showed me a different kind of relationship with God that I could have if I wanted one, and I do. It was the simplicity of your relationship with God that I was particularly drawn to because you talk to God about everything. It’s like you know you have God on your side. I need to practice what I have just learned because I don’t know how to talk to God on a regular basis like you do. Since meeting you only a week ago, I have a different mindset about my spiritual growth and I am open to allowing myself to be guided by God in what to do next in my life.” She also enjoyed the moped story in Chapter IX God is my Travel Agent – A Calling to Bermuda. She said, “When you screamed FU God and threw your moped to the ground, I knew you were real.”

Probably like most of you, I don’t always know what kind of an impact my presence and sharing my life and light has on people’s lives and how far-reaching it may go to impact others’ lives. Probably just as well because I might get a big head! So I am grateful to Dana for sharing how her life is changing and how she is now being used to share her light with her clients and students in her yoga classes. It delights me that she is paying it forward.

I met Dana for a beach walk on the day she left to go back home. She bought another one of my books and didn’t know who she was going to give it to. We laughed and both knew she would be led to give it to the right and perfect person. It didn’t take her long to know who that was. For example, she shared with me about a recent therapy session she had with one of her clients.

“My client is a young woman with a strong desire to find her soulmate, just like you did. She considers herself to be a person of very strong faith, but felt anxious. Remembering your book, I encouraged her to use her faith as her guide when trying to find this man. In fact, I was led to give her your book! I told her that I met the author who deepened her own relationship with God on her journey to find a life partner. Little does the reader know that you actually did find your soulmate after writing the book, Pat. You’ve got a sequel!” The woman was so excited about the book when Dana gave it to her and said, “My mother would love this book also and I’m going to buy her one.” Upon leaving the client commented, “You look different, Dana, you seem very spiritually inspired.” She was right!

In several of her yoga classes this week, Dana told her students about meeting me and reading my book. She laughed and said, “I shared with my students that I had been praying for a “guru” to inspire me spiritually. I thought that I had met him at a conference that I attended last month. But no he’s not the one. Pat is the REAL one that I know God brought into my life. The theme of our classes was about God/Divine being inside of us.”

This whole experience has been exciting for me and has shown me how important it is to just BE me and SHINE. I have a small plaque in my bedroom that I have had since moving to Maui.

“SHINE – You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead, they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before men and women, that they may see your good works and praise our Father in heaven.”